Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Microsoft and The Office

Ooops... Silicon.com reports that Microsoft is investigating how two of its internal training videos created by UK comedy duo Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have surfaced on the internet.

The humorous videos are titled 'The Office Values' and were made three years ago. The pair agreed to write and appear in them, on the condition they were never made public. Although Microsoft did confirm their existence in 2004, it refused at the time to release any details.

But earlier this month, the two videos turned up on the internet. Although some sites appear to have removed them after encountering pressure from Microsoft or Gervais' representatives, they can now be seen on Google Video and YouTube as well as some blogs.

He also warns computer "boffins" of the dangers of hard work, as "too much thinking makes Jack a mental case".

In the videos, Gervais plays the role of David Brent, the anti-hero star of The Office, the critically acclaimed television show written by Gervais and Merchant. Brent visits Microsoft UK's offices as a management consultant, to advise and educate its staff.

During the videos, Brent suggests he would make an excellent managing director for Microsoft UK, as long as he could be awarded a salary and company car commensurate with the importance of the role - namely £40,000 per year and a new Mondeo.

He also warns computer "boffins" of the dangers of hard work, as "too much thinking makes Jack a mental case".

1 comment:

Anonymous
said...

I can remember using some hilarious John Cleese Management Training Videos over 20 years ago. Ricky Gervais does not get anywhere near the laughter mark for me. What was creepy was the unrolling of Microsoft's CORE values! Ugh!